Teen scores final touchdown despite cancerous brain tumor

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FEDERAL WAY, Wash. -- High school football players live their dream on the gridiron every week for Friday Night Football. That dream ended abruptly for Dom Cooks, who watches the game from a wheelchair after being diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor.

Once a standout defensive lineman for Decatur High School, Cooks is now tackling the foe of a lifetime. An inoperable brain tumor has been blitzing the left side of his brain for a year and half, and the tumor has ravaged the left side of his body.

It hasn't taken away his love for football - as he still goes to games and practices - but there was unfinished business for Cooks. He hungered, just once more, to bask in the glow of the Friday night lights.

One evening coaches from Decater and Auburn Mountainview teams agreed to run a play for Cooks before halftime, and after feeling the rush that comes with holding a football, Cooks crossed the goal line and celebrated with a dance.

As he returned to his wheelchair, the players on the field knew what this moment meant. Both teams surrounded Cooks in celebration, while chanting his nickname "Cookie."

Cooks was also named Homecoming King.

"Getting back on the field, doing what I used to do back before I got the tumor, and it's just like, a little testament to everybody that nothing is ever impossible, and you should never quit chasing your dreams ever," Cooks said.

Doctors have given Cooks three to six months to live, but Cooks says he doesn't listen to them. He says the tumor taught him that tomorrow is not a promise, and he needs to embrace every single day.